Don't Be Shy
by ShayDenney311
Summary: Don't be shy, just let you feelings roll on by...After being alone, afraid, and misunderstood for twenty-eight years, Emma finally reuniting with her family gives her a sense of belonging. Post-Queen of Hearts. Emma/Snow, Emma/Henry. Another fluffy one-shot for your entertainment. :)


**Don't Be Shy**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own OUAT or any of the characters. Only the plot. :)

Adjusting back to the apartment wasn't difficult at all. Other than having to comfortably squeeze four people into Mary Margaret's apartment rather than only two, (not to mention the very spirited debate between Emma and Snow on who was to take the first shower since their arrival back to Storybrooke) everything just seemed to fall back into place. Hugs were exchanged, laughter was shared, the two women told the story of their journey and unlikely friends at least twenty times, and Snow and James were not seen apart the entire afternoon. Emma could not be happier.

"You _sure_ you're going to be fine on the pull out?" she asked her son for the second time while pulling the rickety matress out of the couch and tucking in the sheets. "I've been sleeping on rock hard earth for weeks now; a lumpy old matress will feel like a temperpedic to me."

Henry rolled his eyes and climbed on. Emma swallowed hard at how much he looked like his father when he did that. "And that's exactly why _you_ need the real bed," he explained, "I'm fine." He tucked his story book under his pillow as he settled in the bed.

She smiled. "If you say so." She pulled the blanket up to his chin and instinctively tucked the sides in. He didn't seem to mind. "'night, kiddo."

"'night," he replied. He freed his hands from the tight cocoon to wrap them around her in a soft hug. She returned it. "I'm so glad you're back."

"Me too, Henry. Me too." She moved to her face close to his, acting as if she was going to kiss his cheek. She took a silent breath and blew into his ear with a giggle.

He squirmed away from her in surprise. "Hey!" he laughed, pushing her away playfully. Emma snickered and kissed his forehead.

"Sleep tight," she smiled and turned off the lamp above him. She moved to leave the room.

"I love you, Mom," she heard him say. He had been calling her the _M_ word all afternoon, but it still gave her a soothing, reasuring feeling all over. It made her feel as though she was finally getting it right.

She spun back around with a loving smile. "I love you too, kid," she whispered, watching him curl against the pillow as he started drifting off. She made her way to the kitchen, were Snow was standing at the doorway in her pajamas. A loving beam lit up her face.

"Look at you," she said barely above a whisper, "you truly are his mother now." Her voice was gentle and proud like, well, a mother's would be. As it should be, because she was. Biologically, of course.

Although weeks of spending every waking moment with each other was nice when they weren't fighting the odds for survival, but part of Snow knew that the maternal gap in her heart would never quite be filled. Her baby she knew for minutes only was now a grown up, a woman, a mother herself. As lucky as she forced herself to think she was, she wished with all her heart to have those moments back that were ripped from her.

But seeing her with Henry always did fill the gap ever so slightly.

Emma shrugged with a fluttered smile and poured herself a glass of water. Snow silently sighed. She didn't know where she was going with the conversation. The last thing she wanted to do was make her feel guilty for not being a part of his life until barely a year ago. Nor did she want to make herself feel guilty either. She did know that she was completely over anylizing the moment. She shook it off with a deep breath and sipped from the tea cup in her hand.

Emma was the one to break the silence. "Did you know that today was the first time he's called me _Mom_?"

Snow shook her head with a smile, enjoying the one on her daughter's face. "No, I didn't." She peered across the room at her now sleeping grandson. "Enjoy it while it lasts," she stressed softly, "before you know it he'll be twenty-eight and and have a kid of his own." She gave her a playful glance, not wanting her to think she was trying to awkwardly mom-lecture her.

Emma shuddered as she gulped her second glass. "Don't even scare me like that. I swear he's grown a foot since we left." She studied Henry as he slept. The look in her eyes was full of love, like she never wanted to leave his side again. She knew the feeling all too well.

"I'm with Henry on this one," Snow sighed as she watched him adjust to the other side of the bed, "I think everyone's going to get a good sleep tonight around here." She took another sip of her tea.

"Ha, _especially_ you and David," she snickered, just as Snow promptly spit it back in her cup.

"EMMA!" Snow snapped, trying to fight back her laughter while she wiped her chin.

"I'm just kidding!" she exclaimed. The followed silence lead to both women errupting in side splitting howls together. Minutes later, Snow was wiping tears from her eyes as Emma took a deep breath and fanned herself.

Emma finally gathered enough oxygen to function again. "Mom I don't think I've laughed this hard since.. ever." She chuckled until she realized Snow wasn't laughing along with her. She was gawking straight at her with her mouth gaping open like a fish out of water. It took her about thirty seconds to remember exactly what she had just slipped out. _The M word._

"I..I uh-" she tried to cover up her tracks, but Snow grasping her hand stopped her. She had a broad smile with tears glistening in her bright green eyes.

"It's okay," she said softly. Emma still couldn't believe she let that slip out. She was Emma Freaking Swan, the girl who raised herself to be tough and depended on no one. To never let her guard down for even a split second. And here she was, near tears holding her mother's hand. The reasurence in her voice just melted the hurt away.

"I'm going to bed now," Emma mumbled. Snow nodded. She didn't want to push her. The both grinned bashfully and made their ways to their bedrooms. Emma couldn't help but doze off with a smile on her face. Just an accidental slip of the tongue gave her so much closure for a dark past in her life. She was finally where she belonged, and she didn't have to be alone or afraid anymore.

She heard a tiny rap on her door. She picked her head up just as her son poked his through the door. His forehead and bangs were drenched with sweat. "Mom?"

"What's wrong? What happened?" she choked.

He looked down at his feet. "I was in that red room again."

She glanced at him sympathetically. "Henry, you know that red room is what helped us get home, right? You don't have to be scared of it anymore."

"I know," he slumped his shoulders and hesitated before asking a simple question. "C-can I sleep with you tonight?" his voice shook slightly.

Emma beamed. "Yeah. Come on in," She nodded. He grinned and snuggled under the covers next to her. He entertwined their fingers as his eyelids fluttered. Emma softly kissed his forehead as he drifted back to sleep. She memorized his breathing pattern before closing her own eyes, their hands still glued together as one.

Scratch before. _Now_ she was finally where she truly, truly belonged.

**Thoughts? Let me know! :)**


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